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Arrivals & Departures - 09 December 1906
Celebrate Grace Brewster Murray Hopper Day!
Grace Brewster Murray Hopper (née Murray; December 9, 1906 – January 1, 1992) was an American computer scientist and United States Navy rear admiral. One of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I computer, she was a pioneer of computer programming who invented one of the first compiler related tools. She popularized the idea of machine-independent programming languages, which led to the development of COBOL, an early high-level programming language still in use today.
Prior to joining the Navy, Hopper attained a Ph.D. in mathematics from Yale University and was a professor of mathematics at Vassar College. Hopper attempted to enlist in the Navy during World War II but was rejected because she was 34 years old. She instead joined the Navy Reserves. Hopper began her computing career in 1944 when she worked on the Harvard Mark I team led by Howard H. Aiken. In 1949, she joined the Eckert–Mauchly Computer Corporation and was part of the team that developed the UNIVAC I computer. At Eckert–Mauchly she began developing the compiler. She believed that a programming language based on English was possible. Her compiler converted English terms into machine code understood by computers. By 1952, Hopper had finished her program linker (originally called a compiler), which was written for the A-0 System.
In 1954, Eckert–Mauchly chose Hopper to lead their department for automatic programming, and she led the release of some of the first compiled languages like FLOW-MATIC. In 1959, she participated in the CODASYL consortium, which consulted Hopper to guide them in creating a machine-independent programming language. This led to the COBOL language, which was inspired by her idea of a language being based on English words. In 1966, she retired from the Naval Reserve, but in 1967, the Navy recalled her to active duty. She retired from the Navy in 1986 and found work as a consultant for the Digital Equipment Corporation, sharing her computing experiences.
Owing to her accomplishments and her naval rank, she was sometimes referred to as “Amazing Grace”. The U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Hopper was named for her, as was the Cray XE6 “Hopper” supercomputer at NERSC. During her lifetime, Hopper was awarded 40 honorary degrees from universities across the world. A college at Yale University was renamed in her honor. In 1991, she received the National Medal of Technology. On November 22, 2016, she was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.
Arrivals & Departures - 06 December 1900
Celebrate Agnes Robertson Moorehead Day
Agnes Robertson Moorehead (December 6, 1900 – April 30, 1974) was an American actress whose six-decade career included work in radio, stage, film, and television. She is best known for her role as Endora on the television series Bewitched, but she also has notable roles in films, including Citizen Kane, The Magnificent Ambersons, All That Heaven Allows, Show Boat, and Hush… Hush, Sweet Charlotte.
Moorehead rarely played lead roles, but her skill at character development and range earned her one Primetime Emmy Award and two Golden Globe awards in addition to nominations for four Academy Awards and six Emmy Awards. Her transition to television won acclaim for drama and comedy. She could play many different types, but often portrayed haughty, arrogant characters.
Arrivals & Departures - 08 December 1933
Celebrate Clerow “Flip” Wilson Jr. Day!
Clerow “Flip” Wilson Jr. (December 8, 1933 – November 25, 1998) was an American comedian and actor best known for his television appearances during the late 1960’s and the 1970’s. From 1970 to 1974, Wilson hosted his own weekly variety series, The Flip Wilson Show, and introduced viewers to his recurring character Geraldine. The series earned Wilson a Golden Globe and two Emmy Awards, and at one point was the second highest rated show on network television. Wilson was the first African-American to host a successful variety TV show. (Sammy Davis Jr. had had a short-lived variety show in 1966). In January 1972, Time magazine featured Wilson’s image on its cover and named him “TV’s first black superstar”.
Wilson released a number of comedy albums in the 1960’s and 70’s, and won a Grammy Award for his 1970 album The Devil Made Me Buy This Dress.
After The Flip Wilson Show ended, Wilson kept performing and acting until the 1990’s, though at a reduced schedule. He hosted a short-lived revival of People are Funny in 1984, and had the lead role in the 1985-1986 sitcom Charlie & Co.
Serendipity
1934 Packard Twelve Convertible Victoria
Packard was an American luxury automobile marque built by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, United States. The first Packard automobiles were produced in 1899, and the last Detroit-built Packard in 1956, when they built the Packard Predictor, their last concept car.
Packard bought Studebaker in 1953 and formed the Studebaker-Packard Corporation of South Bend, Indiana. The 1957 and 1958 Packard’s were actually badge engineered Studebaker’s, built in South Bend.
Entering the 1930′s, Packard attempted to beat the stock market crash and subsequent Great Depression by manufacturing ever more opulent and expensive cars than it had prior to October 1929. While the Eight five-seater sedan had been the company’s top-seller for years, the Twin Six, designed by Vincent, was introduced for 1932, with prices starting at $3,650 (equal to $65575 today) at the factory gate; in 1933, it would be renamed the Packard Twelve, a name it retained for the remainder of its run (through 1939). Also in 1931, Packard pioneered a system it called Ride Control, which made the hydraulic shock absorber’s adjustable from within the car. For one year only, 1932, Packard fielded an upper-medium-priced car, the Light Eight, at a base price of $1,750, or $735 less than the standard Eight.
1931 Ninth Series model 840
As an independent automaker, Packard did not have the luxury of a larger corporate structure absorbing its losses, as Cadillac did with GM and Lincoln with Ford. However, Packard did have a better cash position than other independent luxury marques. Peerless ceased production in 1932, changing the Cleveland manufacturing plant from producing cars to brewing beer for Carling Black Label Beer. By 1938, Franklin, Marmon, Ruxton, Stearns-Knight, Stutz, Duesenberg, and Pierce-Arrow had all closed.
Packard also had one other advantage that some other luxury automakers did not: a single production line. By maintaining a single line and interchangeability between models, Packard was able to keep its costs down. Packard did not change cars as often as other manufacturers did at the time. Rather than introducing new models annually, Packard began using its own “Series” formula for differentiating its model changeovers in 1923. New model series did not debut on a strictly annual basis, with some series lasting nearly two years, and others lasting as short a time as seven months. In the long run, though, Packard averaged around one new series per year. By 1930, Packard automobiles were considered part of its Seventh Series. By 1942, Packard was in its Twentieth Series. The “Thirteenth Series” was omitted.
1934 Eleventh Series Eight model 1101 convertible sedan
To address the Depression, Packard started producing more affordable cars in the medium-price range. In 1935, the company introduced its first car under $1000, the 120. Sales more than tripled that year and doubled again in 1936. To produce the 120, Packard built and equipped an entirely separate factory. By 1936, Packard’s labor force was divided nearly evenly between the high-priced “Senior” lines (Twelve, Super Eight, and Eight) and the medium-priced “Junior” models, although more than 10 times more Juniors were produced than Seniors. This was because the 120 models were built using thoroughly modern mass production techniques, while the Senior Packards used a great deal more hand labor and traditional craftsmanship. Although Packard almost certainly could not have survived the Depression without the highly successful Junior models. they did have the effect of diminishing the Senior models’ exclusive image among those few who could still afford an expensive luxury car. The 120 models were more modern in basic design than the Senior models; for example, the 1935 Packard 120 featured independent front suspension and hydraulic brakes, features that would not appear on the Senior Packards until 1937.
During this time, Packards were built in Windsor, Ontario by the Packard Motor Company of Canada Ltd. Production started in 1931, with the best year being 1937, with just over 2,500 cars built. Parts manufactured in Canada included tires, upholstery, radiator cores, headlamps, springs, wheels, while the engines were locally assembled. Production ended in 1939, although the company maintained an office in Windsor for many years.
Arrivals & Departures - 08 December 1542
Celebrate Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots Day!
Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, reigned over Scotland from 14 December 1542 to 24 July 1567.
Mary, the only surviving legitimate child of King James V, was six days old when her father died and she acceded to the throne. She spent most of her childhood in France while Scotland was ruled by regents, and in 1558, she married the Dauphin of France, Francis. He ascended the French throne as King Francis II in 1559, and Mary briefly became queen consort of France, until his death in December 1560. Widowed, Mary returned to Scotland, arriving in Leith on 19 August 1561. Four years later, she married her first cousin, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley and in June 1566 they had a son, James.
In February 1567, Darnley’s residence was destroyed by an explosion, and he was found murdered in the garden. James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, was generally believed to have orchestrated Darnley’s death, but he was acquitted of the charge in April 1567, and the following month he married Mary. Following an uprising against the couple, Mary was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle. On 24 July 1567 she was forced to abdicate in favour of her one-year-old son. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, she fled southwards seeking the protection of her first cousin once removed, Queen Elizabeth I of England. Mary had once claimed Elizabeth’s throne as her own, and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics, including participants in a rebellion known as the Rising of the North. Perceiving her as a threat, Elizabeth had her confined in various castles and manor houses in the interior of England. After eighteen and a half years in custody, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth in 1586. She was beheaded the following year at Fotheringhay Castle.
Serendipity
Suiza Dubonnet Xenia 1938
Credits: Wired.com
You’re looking at one of the finest examples of automotive Art Deco: the 1938 Hispano-Suiza Dubonnet Xenia. Go ahead, stare. Now wipe that drool off your keyboard.
Currently on display at the Mullin Automotive Museum in Oxnard, California, the Xenia was based on the Hispano-Suiza H6 heavily modified with independent suspension designed by driver, pilot and aperitif heir Andre Dubonnet. Each wheel was mounted on a single arm extending forward from kingpins at the end of the axle, while sealed, oil-lubricated coil springs and shock absorbers ensured a smooth ride.
The “Dubonnet suspension” was licensed to Alfa Romeo and Simca and sold to General Motors, which marketed it as “Knee-Action” suspension. The sealed coil springs were leak-prone and wildly expensive to repair, however, and the technology never made it into post-war cars.
Suspension aside, the Xenia’s hand-built coachwork by Jacques Saoutchik makes a Talbot Lago look like a Renault Fuego by comparison. It fits in the Mullin’s “French Curves” collection of pre-war French vehicles (Hispano-Suiza, though Spanish in heritage, built many of their cars in France through a French subsidiary), but park the Xenia next to any other car of the era and it looks like the Clampetts are in town.
Arrivals & Departures - 06 December 1908
Celebrate Lester Joseph Gillis [Baby Face Nelson] Day!
Lester Joseph Gillis (December 6, 1908 – November 27, 1934), known by the alias George Nelson, better known as Baby Face Nelson, was an American bank robber in the 1930’s. Gillis was given the nickname Baby Face due to his youthful appearance and small stature, although few dared call him “Baby Face” to his face. Criminal associates instead called him “Jimmy”. Nelson entered into a partnership with John Dillinger, helping him escape from prison during the famed Crown Point, Indiana Jail escape, and was later labeled along with the remaining gang members as public enemy number one.
Nelson was responsible for killing more FBI agents in the line of duty (three: W. Carter Baum, Herman Hollis, and Samuel P. Cowley) than any other person. Nelson was fatally shot by FBI agents during a shootout called The Battle of Barrington.
Man’s Impact on the Environment
Amer Fort [Amber Fort]
Amer, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India
Amer Fort is a fort located in Amer, Rajasthan, India. Amer is a town with an area of 4 square kilometres (1.5 sq mi) located 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) from Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. Located high on a hill, it is the principal tourist attraction in Jaipur. The town of Amer was originally built by Meenas, and later it was ruled by Raja Man Singh I (December 21, 1550 – July 6, 1614). Amer Fort is known for its artistic Hindu style elements. With its large ramparts and series of gates and cobbled paths, the fort overlooks Maota Lake, which is the main source of water for the Amer Palace.
Constructed of red sandstone and marble, the attractive, opulent palace is laid out on four levels, each with a courtyard. It consists of the Diwan-i-Aam, or “Hall of Public Audience”, the Diwan-i-Khas, or “Hall of Private Audience”, the Sheesh Mahal (mirror palace), or Jai Mandir, and the Sukh Niwas where a cool climate is artificially created by winds that blow over a water cascade within the palace. Hence, the Amer Fort is also popularly known as the Amer Palace. The palace was the residence of the Rajput Maharajas and their families. At the entrance to the palace near the fort’s Ganesh Gate, there is a temple dedicated to Shila Devi, a goddess of the Chaitanya cult, which was given to Raja Man Singh when he defeated the Raja of Jessore, Bengal in 1604. (Jessore is now in Bangladesh).
This palace, along with Jaigarh Fort, is located immediately above on the Cheel ka Teela (Hill of Eagles) of the same Aravalli range of hills. The palace and Jaigarh Fort are considered one complex, as the two are connected by a subterranean passage. This passage was meant as an escape route in times of war to enable the royal family members and others in the Amer Fort to shift to the more redoubtable Jaigarh Fort. Annual tourist visitation to the Amer Palace was reported by the Superintendent of the Department of Archaeology and Museums as 5000 visitors a day, with 1.4 million visitors during 2007. At the 37th session of the World Heritage Committee held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in 2013, Amer Fort, along with five other forts of Rajasthan, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the group Hill Forts of Rajasthan.
Arrivals & Departures - 11 December 1882
Celebrate Fiorello Henry La Guardia Day!
Fiorello Henry La Guardia (/fiəˈrɛloʊ ləˈɡwɑːrdiə/; born Fiorello Enrico La Guardia, Italian pronunciation: [fjoˈrɛllo enˈriːko la ˈɡwardja]; December 11, 1882 – September 20, 1947) was an American politician. He is best known for being the 99th Mayor of New York City for three terms from 1934 to 1945 as a Republican. Previously he had been elected to Congress in 1916 and 1918, and again from 1922 through 1930. Irascible, energetic, and charismatic, he craved publicity and is acclaimed as one of the greatest mayors in American history. Only five feet, two inches (1.57 m) tall, he was called “the Little Flower” (Fiorello is Italian for “little flower”).
La Guardia, a Republican who appealed across party lines, was very popular in New York during the 1930s. As a New Dealer, he supported President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat, and in turn Roosevelt heavily funded the city and cut off patronage for La Guardia’s enemies. La Guardia revitalized New York City and restored public faith in City Hall. He unified the transit system, directed the building of low-cost public housing, public playgrounds, and parks, constructed airports, reorganized the police force, defeated the powerful Tammany Hall political machine, and reestablished employment on merit in place of patronage jobs. La Guardia is also remembered for his WNYC radio program “Talk to the People,” which aired from December 1941 till December 1945.
La Guardia was seen as a domineering leader who verged on authoritarian but whose reform politics were carefully tailored to address the sentiments of his diverse constituency. He won elections against the historically corrupt Tammany Hall political system, presided during the Great Depression and World War II, implemented New Deal welfare and public works programs in the city, and gave political support to immigrants and ethnic minorities. He was also supported by President Roosevelt. La Guardia was known as a reform mayor who helped clean out corruption, brought in experts, and made the city responsible for its own citizens. His administration engaged new groups that had been kept out of the political system, gave New York its modern infrastructure, and raised expectations of new levels of urban possibility.




![Arrivals & Departures - 06 December 1908
Celebrate Lester Joseph Gillis [Baby Face Nelson] Day!
Lester Joseph Gillis (December 6, 1908 – November 27, 1934), known by the alias George Nelson, better known as Baby Face Nelson, was an American bank...](https://66.media.tumblr.com/5eefefbdab84f98a613cdec98b099808/tumblr_pjc70m0AJE1wyd6eeo1_1280.jpg)
![Arrivals & Departures - 11 December 1882
Celebrate Fiorello Henry La Guardia Day!
Fiorello Henry La Guardia (/fiəˈrɛloʊ ləˈɡwɑːrdiə/; born Fiorello Enrico La Guardia, Italian pronunciation: [fjoˈrɛllo enˈriːko la ˈɡwardja]; December 11, 1882 –...](https://66.media.tumblr.com/d4071d1cefc74e3052206dac80e81fca/tumblr_pjl32dww3s1wyd6eeo1_1280.jpg)